y results in some form of punishment. Moreover, they both contribute to mold the society's inhabitants, with anyone not following these norms immediately labeled as outcasts or social deviants.Ralph Waldo Emerson a renowned Transcendentalist, identified the concepts of normative behavior within a literary sense in his rather fervent speech “The American Scholar”. Emerson berates the academic community for sometimes going beyond the written word. Emerson begins by condemning those “bookworms” who would place literature on a pedestal, perhaps forgetting one day that indeed the work may be great, but it was not the words of an omnipotent being. Instead he argues that it is merely words from a man, a being that can never be “perfect”. Calling for a change in thought among literary circles, he urges contemporary writers to lay their foundations on previous author’s creative process, allowing them to release their own talents, rather than have them strain to model books they had previously assimilated. His solicitations for the removal of the pedestal on which many pieces of literature lie bring the readers to ponder what are the true deeper meanings within themselves. As a transcendentalist his views on individualistic thought and expression are reflected in his speech. His preaching against the herd mentality, whether it be regarding literature or within life, define the virtues for which Emerson obviously hopes to share. Nevertheless, Emerson does not discard literature itself as flawed. Instead he maintains the necessity of free thought when interpreting the texts; the persistent need for analysis and self-introspection. With this message Emerson walks the fine line between two schools of thought.Moreover, history has shown that the ideas can and are manipulated. Although not all literature stipulates manipulation, most literature is a subtle form of coercion. The doctrines laid out to create sens...
